Shingles which are attached to the roofs of buildings to protect the interior of the buildings from inclement weather are currently manufactured in a few standard sizes such that the overall size of such shingles does not vary considerably. When these commercial shingles are used by roofers, a single row of shingles is first aligned with the lower leading edge of the roof to be shingled and then successive layers of shingles are overlapped on the preceding row of shingles, and are laid parallel therewith. In addition, the shingles are laid in a manner such that they generally abut each other from side to side or, there is a small amount of lateral spacing between the ends of the shingles. The construction of the individual shingles is significant, in that, for the purposes of the aesthetic pattern that the shingles make on a finished roof, the shingles are designed with notches which extend part of the way through the shingle. These notches are evenly spaced apart in the shingle from side to side and they extend approximately one-half of the way through the shingle from the bottom edge of the shingle towards the top edge of the shingle. Owing to the even spacing of these notches, each shingle is designed on its end edges with what amounts to half a notch, such that when the shingle is laterally abutted to a neighboring shingle, the half notches in each shingle come together to form a full notch and thus maintain the continuity of the notch pattern from one side of the roof to the other. The shingles are misaligned from row to row such that the notches are staggered to create an even pattern.
In order to keep the shingle rows straight and parallel to the leading edge of the roof, and also in order to maintain consistent lateral spacing between adjacent shingles so that the final result is an aesthetically pleasing fully protected roof, there have been many methods and devices created and used.
The earliest and simplest method was and is the use of a chalk line which lays down a visible mark at a measured distance above and parallel to the previous row of installed shingles. The chalk line is measured a predetermined distance above the installed shingle, and from side to side on the roof, and the top edge of the next successive row of shingles is laid up against the line and nailed into place to give a straight and parallel row of shingles. This method however is laborious and does not allow for a consistent lateral spacing between adjacent shingles in the same row. Moreover, quite often the roofer must cut shingles in various lengths and in various shapes in order to complete the aesthetic quality of the roof. The extra cutting and fitting always requires additional hand tools, such as, squares or analogous straight edged tools; measuring devices, although some squares have measured gradations along their edges; patterns and the like. The problem with the extra tools, of course, is the problem of where to store the tools on the rooftop so that they will be handy to the roofer while at the same time they will be secure from slipping and sliding to the ground.
A second problem is the problem of handling the extra tools, the shingle and the nails and hammer all at the same time in order that the shingle be placed, aligned, held in place and nailed without losing alignment and/or the tools, nails, hammer, or the roofer, to the ground.
Many devices have therefore been developed to aid the roofer to align, space, hold and nail the shingle. Some of the devices in the prior art, however, have merely been gauges, mostly patterned after the simple carpenters gauge. None of these devices have the ability to maintain the gauged shingle in the aligned and spaced position. The skilled roofer, using such prior art devices, must still hold the aligned and spaced shingle in position while managing to nail the shingle in place. Such devices are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 853,198, issued May 7, 1907; U.S. Pat. No. 1,210,469, issued Jan. 2, 1917 and U.S. Pat. No. 1,645,808, issued Oct. 18, 1927.
In a similar manner, there have been gauge devices designed that align and space the shingles and also hold the shingle in place. These devices operate by being clamped tightly to the bottom edge of the shingles on an installed row of shingles. The shingles to be installed are then placed on the aligning device such that the bottom edge of the shingle being installed is supported by an edge of the alignment device, a predetermined distance gauged by the device, so that the shingle to be installed is properly aligned and spaced with the proper overlap, and is held in this position until nailed in place. Such devices are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,110,911, issued Sept. 5, 1978 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,183,144, issued Jan. 15, 1980.
The disadvantage of these devices is that they are cumbersome and are difficult to store on a rooftop when not in use and moreover, they have no other function, except perhaps as a straight edge for cutting purposes. Furthermore, these devices require the use of clamps and springs or knurled nut and bolt clamping devices which must be operated each time the device is moved and repositioned, all of which causes the loss of time, and inconvenience, for the roofer.
The roofers square and cap cutter and alignment tools of this invention overcome the disadvantages of the devices of the prior art.
The devices of the instant invention are of simple construction without the use of nuts and bolts, springs and clamps. The devices of the instant invention are accurate, durable, lightweight, inexpensive, easily placed and adjusted, give proper alignment and spacing, do not require that the roofer hold them in place and these devices provide many functions in addition to alignment, spacing and holding, such as straight edge, square, accurate bias cutting and template for patterns for special cutting and capping work.